WhatStove?

Review of FDC 5kw

A super little stove

N Ingham 12 years ago

I wanted a stove to replace the hideous 1970's York stone fire surround and damaged Baxi in our dining room. As I work from home in this room I wanted something that would heat the room during the day in winter so that I didn't have to heat the whole house using the central heating. This does the job nicely. I've used both wood and smokeless fuel and have tended to prefer using the smokeless fuel as it is 'less demanding' (longer burn time - the logs went up quickly, then died away quickly. We actually got the same fire surround shown in the image above for the stove and we're really pleased with it. The tiles are slate effect ceramic tiles (which I didn't realise) but they look super. The mantle is a stone resin compound - it feels cold and smooth to the touch - like a polished stone. It goes really well with the rest of the room - elegant and stylish without being too 'rustic' or too dominant. Just perfect for a 1920's Arts and Crafts style house.

In summary, we're really pleased with the overall aesthetic effect and the heating!

NB - overnight rating is invalid in this case - we've never had it burning overnight purposefully.

Stove expert replied: Fair review, the marks awarded show its strengths and weaknesses.

Overall rating:

4 flames

Build Quality 4 flames (avg 4.4)
Quality of finish 4 flames (avg 4.5)
Value for money 5 flames (avg 4.9)
Ease of use 4 flames (avg 4.7)
Ease of lighting 4 flames (avg 4.6)
Firebox size 3 flames (avg 3.3)
How well does the airwash work 3 flames (avg 3.9)
Controllability 4 flames (avg 3.8)
Handle operation 4 flames (avg 3.8)
How likely are you to buy it again? 5 flames (avg 3.8)
What is your overall satisfaction? 4 flames (avg 4.3)